Heated articles of clothing and devices

ABSTRACT

Articles of clothing, such as thermally conductive gloves, are provided. In some embodiments, a glove includes a fabric, a battery, and a fibrous material. The fabric battery may be electrically coupled to the material such that the material becomes thermally conductive when coupled to the battery, and loses its thermal conductivity when no longer coupled to the battery. In some embodiments, the battery couples to the fibrous material via a magnetic attraction.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Systems, methods, and devices for using magnetism to utilize a battery that is operable to create substantially immediate heat for gloves and other various articles of clothing are provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is an illustrative diagram of a heatable glove including a battery in accordance with various embodiments;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are illustrative diagrams of configurations for incorporating a conductive material into a glove in accordance with various embodiments;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are illustrative diagrams of a battery reversibly coupled to a glove via magnetism in accordance with various embodiments;

FIG. 4 is an illustrative diagram of an exemplary insert for use within an article of clothing for a battery housing in accordance with various embodiments; and

FIG. 5 is an illustrative diagram of a heatable shirt in accordance with various embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A rapidly heatable article of clothing including a battery magnetically coupled thereto, as described herein, may allow a user to have a substantially noticeable warming effect created within an article of clothing, such as a glove, shoe, sock, or other article of clothing incorporating the battery. The warming sensation may be felt by the user throughout the particular article of clothing being worn by the user in a substantially small amount of time. The warming sensation may also be strong enough to suitably warm the user (or the particular area of the user's body covered by the article of clothing), without providing adverse effects such as burning or irritation. However, the warming sensation, nonetheless, may still be created with minimal delay.

As used herein, an article of clothing broadly corresponds to any object that may cover or contact a portion of an individual's body. For example, an article of clothing may correspond to a glove, sock, hat, shoe, shirt, jacket, undergarment, scarf, pant, and/or boot. However, an article of clothing may also correspond, in some embodiments, to a blanket, a sheet, a duvet, a throw, a pillow, a mattress, or any other object that may contact an individual. As such, the present disclosure is not limited to the traditional definition of an article of clothing, but is broadly used to encompass any and all objects that may be suitable for providing a warming sensation to an individual.

One or more heating elements, such as conductive wires, filaments, yarns, or threads, may couple to the battery. The heating elements may extend from the location of the battery, in some embodiments, to various regions of the article of clothing. Gloves, for example, may have one or more conductive threads extending from a housing to various portions the glove (e.g., finger and/or palm portions). In this particular scenario, the conductive threads may extend to the fingertips of the glove(s), enabling a warming sensation to be translated to a user's fingers.

FIG. 1 is an illustrative diagram of a glove including a battery in accordance with various embodiments. Glove 2 is one exemplary embodiment of a heatable glove that may be worn by an individual. As shown in FIG. 1, a “back-of-the-hand” view 3 of glove 2 and a “front-of-the-hand” view 4 of glove 2 are presented side by side. For illustrative purposes, only glove 2 is shown, however persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that another glove for a corresponding hand (e.g., right hand, left hand) may also be represented by the illustrated embodiment

Glove 2 is substantially glove shaped and may include thumb portion 6 a, an index finger portion 6 b, a middle finger portion 6 c, a ring finger portion 6 d, and a pinky finger portion 6 e, each of which may provide cover for a respective finger or digit of an individual's hand when glove 2 is worn by the individual. In some embodiments, however, glove 2 may be more mitten shaped, and accordingly include a thumb portion 6 a and a finger portion that may include space for a pointer, middle, ring, and pinky finger, instead of separate portions for each digit. However, in other embodiments, glove 2 may include cut-offs at various sections of portions 6 a-e such that an individual's fingertips may be exposed.

Glove 2 also may include palm portion 8 b and back-of-the-hand portion 8 a, which are located opposite one another. Palm portion 8 b and back-of-the-hand portion 8 a may join finger portions 6 a-e with wrist portions 10 a and 10 b. Wrist portion 10 a may be an outer wrist portion (e.g., a portion of a glove located proximate to back-of-the-hand portion 8 a), while wrist portion 10 b may be an inner wrist portion (e.g., located proximate palm portion 8 b). Glove 2 may be substantially unitary such that wrist portions 10 a and 10 b are seamlessly connected to palm portion 8 b and back-of-the-hand portion 8 a, which is seamlessly connected to finger portions 6 a-e.

In some embodiments, different materials or fabrics may be used to form some or all of the various portions of glove 2. For example, finger portions 6 a-e may be formed of a first material or fabric, while portions 8 a and 8 b may be formed of a second material or fabric, and portions 10 a and 10 b may be formed of a third material. Various types of material or fabric that may be used to form one or more portions of glove 2 may include, but are not limited to, leather, conductive leather, water resistant leather, water resistant conductive leather, cotton, polyester, denim, flax, silk, and/or fur. In some embodiments, however, each portion of glove 2 may be formed of only one material (e.g., leather) or fabric. In some embodiments, portions of glove 2 may be formed of multiple materials or fabrics. For example, portions of glove 2 may include an outer layer material and an inner layer material with an insulating material located between the outer and inner layer. Furthermore, glove 2 may be any suitable shape, size, and/or color or colors, and may include one or more logos or other insignias adorned to any suitable region or area.

In some embodiments, glove 2 may be formed of one or more layers. For example, glove 2 may include multiple layers including a liner layer, a leather layer, a base layer, a middle layer, and/or a top layer. In some embodiments, one or more of the aforementioned layers may include conductive elements such that glove 2 may be conductive and capable of being used to interact with a touch-screen of a user device (e.g., a smart phone, tablet, laptop computer, and/or desktop computer including a touch-screen). A more detailed description of a systems and methods for forming leather gloves including conductive layers capable of interacting with touch-screens is described in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 8,507,102, filed on Aug. 7, 2012, and commonly-assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/958,126, which was filed on Aug. 2, 2013, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Furthermore, more detailed descriptions of water-repellant conductive fabrics and methods for making the same are described in commonly-assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/566,623, filed on Dec. 10, 2014, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In some embodiments, wrist portions 10 a and 10 b may be formed of, or may include, a substantially rigid material capable of providing support to a structure located in or on wrist portions 10 a and 10 b. For example, wrist portions 10 a and 10 b may include a plastic or foam insert that may wrap around wrist portions 10 a and 10 b to provide support to wrist portions 10 a and 10 b. In some embodiments, a portion of the substantially rigid material may extend from wrist portions 10 a and 10 b to thumb portion 6 a.

Wrist portion 10 a may also, in some embodiments, include strap 12 which may be used to secure glove 2 to an individual's hand. For example, strap 12 may include a mechanical fastening mechanism have a male/female portion located on strap 12, and a counter portion (e.g., female/male) located on wrist portion 10 a that allows a user to fasten strap 12 to wrist portion 10 a. For example, strap 12 may include a male or female portion of a button, zipper, or fabric hook and loop fastener, and a counter female or male portion may be located on wrist portion 10 a. Strap 12 may be located in a recess 14 within wrist portion 10 a of glove 2 that enables strap 12 to be extended to any suitable portion about wrist portion 10 a. However, in some embodiments, glove 2 may not include strap 12 and/or recess 14, as glove 2 may be sized differently based on an individual's hand size.

In some embodiments, wrist portion 10 b may include a battery connector (which will be discussed in further detail below), which may also include a housing for a battery 100. A connector 100 may be integrally formed with wrist portion 10 b of glove 2 such that the connector is substantially flush with wrist portion 10 b. For example, wrist portion 10 b may include a recessed portion (e.g., within a substantially rigid material) that may have a connector included therein. In some embodiments, the substantially rigid material that may be used to form, at least a part, of wrist portions 10 a and 10 b may serve to protect a connected battery 100 from damage and/or may serve to protect an individual's wrist(s) from damage due to connected battery 100.

In some embodiments, the connector 100 may include a magnetic charge that allows it to connect with a metal battery. In other embodiment, the connector may be a magnet itself that can connect with commercially available batteries and other items capable to coupling to a magnet. In other embodiments, connector 100 may not be magnetized by itself, but in fact may be configured to couple to a magnetized battery via a magnetic charge.

A connector may be oriented in any suitable manner within, or on, glove 2. For example, a connector, which may be substantially rectangular in shape having a length shorter than a width, may be oriented such that the shorter side of the connector is substantially parallel with a length portion of an individual's arm. However, in other embodiments, a connector may be oriented such that the longer side of the connector is substantially parallel with the length portion of an individual's arm, or neither the shorter side, or longer side of the connector may be parallel with an individual's arm, and the connector may be oriented at an angle (e.g., 45-degrees). Persons of ordinary skill in the art will also recognize that the connector may have any suitable shape or size, and thus may be configured or oriented in any suitable manner within, or on, glove 2, and the aforementioned is merely one exemplary illustration.

In some embodiments, the connector may be magnetized such that connector may magnetically couple to battery 100. For instance, in some scenarios, a wearer of an article of clothing may be in substantially inclement weather, including, but not limited to, freezing temperatures. As such, a person may lack the digital dexterity to insert a battery, or otherwise couple a battery to a connector using methods known in the art. Accordingly, in some embodiments, battery 100 and a connector may be magnetized such that a person merely need place battery 100 in the general vicinity of the connector so that battery 100 and the connector become electrically coupled with ease.

In some embodiments, a connector may be configured such that upon coupling to battery 100, heat may be generated throughout glove 2. For instance, in some embodiments, a connector may be electrically coupled to a thermally conductive material (which will be discussed in further detail below) that may serve as a heating element for glove 2. Accordingly, upon a connector magnetic coupling with battery 100, an electric current may run from battery 100, through the connector, and into the thermally conductive material coupled to the connector, which may, for instance, include one or more resistors that generate heat as the electric current runs through the material. As the electric current runs through the thermally conductive material, heat may be generated rapidly, thus warming the glove (or other wearable article, such as a shirt). Once a person determines that enough heat has been generated, the person need only decouple the magnetically coupled connector and battery, thus breaking the electric circuit that causes heat to be generated throughout the thermally conductive material. At any point, assuming that battery 100 has enough energy, battery 100 and a connector may be coupled again in order to begin generating heat throughout the wearable article (e.g., glove 2) again.

In some embodiments, battery 100 may be reversibly coupled to wrist portion 10 b via a housing. For example, an individual may be able to remove battery 100 from a recess within wrist portion 10 b of glove 2 where a housing located therein, may be stored. In this particular scenario, one or more additional straps or covers may also be included on glove 2 that allow the recess that would be a housing to be covered. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any orientation of a housing about glove 2 is possible including, but not limited to, a housing being placed along wrist portion 10 a, palm or back of the hand portions 10 a and 10 b, respectively, on top of wrist portion 10 b (e.g., not within a recess), or any other configuration, or any combination thereof. Furthermore, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that although the aforementioned embodiment relates to a glove, any article of clothing may be used instead. For example, a housing may also be integrated into a portion of a hat, a shoe, a boot, a sock, a jacket, a shirt, an undergarment, a vest, a scarf, and/or a blanket, or any other article of clothing, or any other wearable article, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, a housing may be integrally formed with wrist portion 10 b of glove 2 such that a housing is substantially flush with wrist portion 10 b. For example, wrist portion 10 b may include a recessed portion that may have a housing mounted therein. In some embodiments, the substantially rigid material that may be used to form, at least part, of wrist portions 10 a and 10 b may serve to protect a housing from damage and/or may serve to protect an individual's wrist(s) from damage due to a housing.

In some embodiments, a housing may be oriented in any suitable manner within, or on, glove 2. For example, a housing, which may be substantially rectangular in shape having a length shorter than a width, may be oriented such that the shorter side of a housing is substantially parallel with a length portion of an individual's arm. However, in other embodiments, a housing may be oriented such that the longer side of a housing may be parallel with an individual's arm, and a housing may be oriented at an angle (e.g., 45 degrees). Persons or ordinary skill in the art will also recognize that a housing may have any suitable shape or size, and thus may be configured or oriented in any suitable manner within, or on, glove 2, and the aforementioned is merely an exemplary illustration.

In some embodiments, a housing may also be removable from wrist portion 10 b. For example, an individual may be able to remove a housing from a recess within wrist portion 10 b of glove 2 where a housing, and battery 100 located therein, may be stored. In this particular scenario, one or more additional straps or covers may also be included on glove 2 that allow the recess that would house a housing to be covered. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any orientation of the a housing about glove 2 is possible including, but not limited to, a housing being placed along wrist portions 10 a and/or 10 b, palm 8 a, back of the hand portion 8 b, and/or on top of wrist portion 10 b (e.g., not within a recess), or any other configuration, or any combination thereof. Furthermore, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that although the aforementioned embodiment relates to a glove, any article of clothing may be used instead. For example, a housing may also be integrated into a portion of a hat, a shoe, a boot, a sock, a jacket, a shirt, an undergarment, a vest, a scarf, a blanket, or any other article of clothing, or any other wearable article, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, a housing may be substantially small such that it may be incorporated into an article of clothing including, but not limited to, a glove, a shoe, a hat, and/or a coat, for example. In order for a user to be comfortable wearing a battery such as battery 100, battery 100 and a housing including battery 100 should be of a suitable size such that it does not impede the user's motion or activity, or detract from the aesthetic nature of the article of clothing. However, a housing should be substantially large enough to house a battery that is capable of providing a suitable output of power, such as an amount of power required to provide heat, or a heating sensation, to a user wearing the article of clothing. A housing may, for example, be approximately 5.1 centimeters in length, 5.1 centimeters in width, and 2.9 centimeters in height. However, this is merely exemplary, and the length may range between 3-6 centimeters, the width may range between 3-6 centimeters, and the height may range between 1-3 centimeters. Furthermore, in other embodiments, the length, width, and/or height may vary from the aforementioned ranges by any suitable amount. For example, the length, width, and height may each range from 1 centimeter to 10 centimeters.

In some embodiments, a connector may connect to battery 100 via a printed circuit board. In one illustrative example, battery 100 may produce three-phase alternating current (“AC”) power for a delta configuration (which will be discussed in further detail below) where a heating element (e.g., wire) may have a resistance of approximately 12 Ohms, and may produce approximately 7 Watts of power. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the aforementioned values are merely exemplary.

In some embodiments, a connector and/or housing may be substantially small such that they may be incorporated into an article of clothing including, but not limited to, a glove, shoe, hat, and/or coat, for example. In some embodiments, battery 100 may, for example, be approximately 5.1 cm in length, 5.1 cm in width, and 2.9 cm in height. However this is merely exemplary, and the length may range between 3-6 cm, the width may range between 3-6 cm, and the height may range between 1-3 cm. Furthermore, in other embodiments, the length, width, and/or height may vary from the aforementioned ranges by any suitable amount. For example, the length, width, and height may each range from 1 cm to 10 cm.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are illustrative diagrams of configurations for incorporating a thermally conductive material into a glove in accordance with various embodiments. Heating element configuration 1000, in some embodiments, may be referred to as a delta layout. A delta layout, as used herein, may refer to a single wire, a single conductive element, and/or a single heating element configuration. Heating element configuration 1000 as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, refers to one exemplary embodiment corresponding to a right glove 1002R and a left glove 1002L, which may be substantially similar to glove 2 of FIG. 1. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other articles of clothing may be used with heating element configuration 1000 including, but not limited to, hats, shoes, boots, socks, jackets, shirts, undergarments, vests, and/or scarves. For example, heating element configuration 1000 may be used with a sock and/or a shirt.

Each of gloves 1002R and 1002L may include a thumb portion 1006 a, a index finger portion 1006 b, a middle finger portion 1006 c, a ring finger portion 1006 d, and a pinky finger portion 1006 e, as well as wrist portions 1010R and 1010L. In some embodiments, portions 1006 a-e and 1010 a and 1010 b may be substantially similar to portions 6 a-e and 10 a and 10 b of glove 2, and the previous description may apply. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that, in some embodiments, gloves 1002R and/or 1002L may include fewer or more portions. For example, in some embodiments, gloves 1002R and 1002L may each include a thumb portion and then a finger portion, where the finger portion may cover multiple fingers (e.g., a mitten).

Each portion of gloves 1002R and 1002L may include heating elements that extend through each finger portion. In the exemplary heating element configuration 1000, the various heating elements may correspond to a single wire or heating element. For example, a single heating element may extend from a connector 1012R or 1012L to the various finger portions. In one illustrative embodiment, a first heating element portion 1014 may extend from connector 1012R (e.g., from wrist portions 1010R, 1010L across a palm portion) to thumb portion 1006 a and then to index finger portion 1006 b. A second heating element portion 1016 of the heating element may then return from index finger portion 1006 b to connector 1012R, 1012L. Then, a third heating element portion 1018 of the heating element may extend from connector 1012R to middle finger portion 1006 c, and then to ring finger 1006 d. A fourth heating element portion 1020 of the heating element may then return from ring finger portion 1006 d to connector 1012R, 1012L. Finally, a fifth heating element portion 1022 may extend from connector 1012R, 1012L to pinky finger portion 1006 e, and then return via a sixth heating element portion 1024 to connector 1012R, 1012L.

The heating elements in configuration 1000 may be made of one wire, conductive yarn, or any other type of heating element and may be coupled to, or integrated into, the article of clothing (e.g., glove 2). In some embodiments, the heating element or wire may be a conductive yarn or other fabric including conductive particles or filaments. For example, the heating element may be a stainless steel yarn having a diameter between 0.2 and 0.5 mm, and a resistivity of approximately 9 Ohms/meter. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that, as used herein, a conductive yarn may correspond to a single yarn having conductive particulate distributed throughout the yarn, multiple non-conductive threads and conductive threads woven together into a single yarn, a string-like object made of a conductive material such as steel or copper, or any other type of conductive yarn-like material.

FIG. 2B is an illustrative diagram of another exemplary heating element configuration in accordance with various embodiments, Pleating element configuration 1100 may, in some embodiments, correspond to a three wire configuration, which may be referred to as a “WYE” configuration. Heating element configuration 1100 may be substantially similar to heating element configuration 1000, with the exception that the former may include three heating elements, or wires, 1114, 1116, and 1118.

In some embodiments, heating element 1114 may extend from connector 1012R, 1012L (e.g., from wrist portion 101 OR, 1010L, and through a palm portion) to thumb portion 1006 a. Heating element may then extend about the perimeter of thumb portion 1006 a to index finger portion 1006 b, and then to junction point 1120. Heating element 1116 may extend from connector 1012R, 1012L to middle finger portion 1006 c and then to junction point 1120. Heating element 1118 may extend from connector 1012R, 1012L to pinky finger portion 1006 e to ring finger portion 1006 d and then to junction 1120.

As seen in both heating element configurations 1000 and 1100, the various heating elements may be incorporated into gloves 1002R, 1002L, and 1102R, 1102L in any suitable fashion. In some embodiments, the various heating elements may include a ridged or woven portion proximate a distal end of each finger portion. For example, as seen in thumb portion 1006 a, heating element 1014 and 1114 both extend along thumb portion 1006 a until reach the distal end of thumb portion 1006 a (e.g., opposite the portion of thumb portion 1006 a that is proximate to a palm portion or wrist portion). At the distal end, heating element 1014 and/or 1114 may loop around thumb portion 1006 a, be inserted such that heating element 1014 and/or 1114 forms a toothed pattern, or have any other suitable configuration or pattern. This may enable heating element 1014 and/or 1114 to apply a greater amount of heat to a greater area of coverage by thumb portion 1006 a due to the increased density of heating element 1014 and/or 1114 in that portion of thumb portion 1006 a. A similar effect may be used for each additional finger portion 1006 b-e, and/or for any other section of gloves 1002R, 1002L and/or 1102R, 1102L, and the description for thumb portion 1006 a is merely illustrative.

In some embodiments, heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 may be integrated into an article of clothing that will be used with a battery, such as battery 100 of FIG. 1, to allow a user to generate heat in that article of clothing. For example, gloves 1002R, 1002L may have heating elements 1014-1024 integrated therein to enable a user to generate heat within gloves 1002R, 1002L by connecting a battery, such as battery 100, to a connector, such as connectors 1012R and 1012L. Various techniques may be used to integrate heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 into the article of clothing including, but not limited to, embroidering, sewing. An adhesive, or any other coupling mechanism, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the article of clothing may be formed of a material including conductive fibers such as those used to form heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120. For example, one or more layers of the article of clothing may be stitched together using the heating element materials (e.g., conductive fibers), in some embodiments, the article of clothing may be formed of multiple layers, and the heating elements may be placed between two of the layers. For example, the article of clothing may be a glove, and the glove may include an outer leather layer, and inner layer, and one or more intermediate layers between the inner layer and the outer leather layer. In this particular scenario, the heating elements may be stitched into, or in between, one of the intermediate layers, and or between an intermediate layer and one of the inner and outer leather layer. Persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any other process may be used to integrate the heating elements into the article, and the heating elements may have any suitable pattern when integrated into the article, and the aforementioned is merely exemplary.

For example, in one illustrative embodiment, heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 may be stitched to a base layer including a stitched outline of gloves 1002R, 1002L, 1102R and 1102L. The base layer including heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 stitched thereto may then be sewn into an intermediate layer of gloves 1002R, 1002L, 1102R and 1102L, and another intermediate layer may be stitched onto an opposing side of the base layer such that the base layer is encased by the two intermediate layers. However, in some embodiments, no intermediate layers may be used and the base layer may be stitched to an exterior or outer layer (albeit an inner portion of the exterior or outer layer). Persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that although the aforementioned technique may be used for forming gloves 1002R, 1002L, 1102R and 1102L, a similar technique may be used for forming any other article of clothing.

Heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 may, in some embodiments, be one or more wires, conductive yarns, or any other conductive elements that may allow power generated by battery 100 to be passed from battery 100 thereto. For example, the heating elements 1014-1024 may connect to battery 100 to heat a portion of gloves 1002R, 1002L, 1102R and 1102L. In this scenario, electric currents generated by battery 100 may cause power to be sent to heating elements 1014-1024, producing heat in those areas of gloves 1002R, 1002L, 1102R and 1102L where heating elements 1014-1024 may be located.

In some embodiments, a voltage drop may occur at heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 receiving power from battery 100. The voltage drop may correspond to an amount of voltage deposited or used by a heating element (e.g., heating elements 1014-1024), which may correspond to each heating element's intrinsic resistance and an amount of current passing through each heating element.

The energy deposited from the voltage drop may eventually dissipate. The amount of time or the form of the dissipation may also vary. In some embodiments, the dissipation may be in the form of heat produced by each heating element where the voltage drop occurred. The heat dissipation should be configured such that heating element, which for illustrative purposes may function as a resistor, does not overheat and break down, and it should also be configured to limit the generated heat such that the user is not burned. Most resistors, for example, have an inherent power rating, which corresponds to a maximum amount of power the resistor may accept and still be able to dissipate heat properly without any damage. Thus, in some embodiments, a continuous or semi-continuous source of heat may be formed by providing power to various heating elements (e.g., a resistor), such as heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120.

In some embodiments, heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1124 may have resistive properties such that voltage drops, and thus heat dissipation, may occur along one or more points of heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120. For example, the heating elements 1014-1024 and/or 1114-1120 may be graphite infused three-twist wires, and/or conductive filaments or yarns, which may have certain resistive features. These resistive features may correspond to an overall resistance ranging between 5 and 10 Ohms, however persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any resistance value may be associated with the one or more heating elements, and the resistance may vary for each heating element and/or may vary along a length of the heating element.

The one or more heating elements connected to battery 100 may, in some embodiments, be interwoven or integrated into an article of clothing. For example, the one or more wires may be integrated into the lining of a glove, a hat, shoes, socks, jackets, or any other article of clothing. As a particular example, heated gloves having a three-phase battery incorporated into a portion of one or both of the gloves may have graphite infused wires running through the glove to the glove's fingertips. In this way, in response to actuation of the gears of the generator, power may be sent through the wires, which may in turn dissipate heat. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other methods of dissipating heat through an article of clothing may be used including, but not limited to, conductive liners, one or more resistors placed at specific locations, and/or wires with varying resistive properties.

In some embodiments, the power outputted by a battery, such as battery 100, may be set such that for a certain resistive element, a specific amount of heat will be generated. For example, for a 7 Ohm wire, approximately 7 Watts of power may produce approximately 40 degrees Fahrenheit temperature difference between the temperature inside the gloves and the ambient outside temperature after 15 minutes. As another example, a 6 Ohm wire having approximately 7.5 Watts of power applied thereto, may produce a temperature difference of about 25-degrees Fahrenheit after 15 minutes.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are illustrative diagrams of a battery reversibly coupled to a glove via magnetism in accordance with various embodiments. In some embodiments, it would be necessary for a wearer of an article of clothing to have a fast, easy mechanism for quickly generating heat within the article of clothing, thus warming a corresponding part of the wearer's body in a very short amount of time, depending on the wearer's physiology and/or the ambient temperature, for instance (e.g., 1 minute or less, 5 minutes or less, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, etc.). Accordingly, glove 30, as depicted in FIGS. 3A and 3B, may include a connector 200 for coupling to battery 100.

In some embodiments, battery 100 and connector 200 may be magnetized such that connector 200 may magnetically couple to battery 100. In some embodiments, connector 200 may further include a fastening mechanism for a more secure coupling with battery 100, which may be useful in scenarios in which a wearer of an article of clothing desires heat to be generated for relatively long periods of time. In some embodiments, in addition to or in alternative to magnetism, battery 100 may couple to connector 200 via Velcro, a button, an adhesive, a zipper, or any other manner in which coupling may occur.

In some embodiments, battery 100 may be rechargeable. For instance, battery 100 may be a lithium-ion battery, a lithium-air battery, a nickel-zinc battery, a zinc-bromine battery, a zinc-cerium battery, a zinc-carbon battery, a zinc-air battery, or any other rechargeable battery known in the art.

In some embodiments, battery 100 may be any commercially available battery. For instance, battery 100 may include a female end universal serial bus port, and may be coupled to connector 200 via an electrical cord that includes a male end of a universal serial bus for electrically coupling to the battery, and also includes a magnetic end for magnetically (and electrically) coupling to connector 200. To that end, a wearer of clothing may use any power source to easily generate power needed to heat the clothing using the quick and efficient magnetic coupling.

In some embodiments, glove 30, battery 100, and/or connector 200 may include a switch for controlling electricity generated by battery 100. For instance, the switch may include an “ON” and an “OFF” mechanism for halting and/or resuming the flow of electricity (and, thereby, heat) throughout glove 30. In other embodiments, the switch may be analog such that the voltage running through glove 30 (and, thereby, the rate of heat generation) may be modulated.

Thus, in some embodiments, in order to generate heat within a short amount of time, varying voltages may be applied to heating elements in order to generate heat. For instance, in some embodiments, a 3.7 volt, 1 ampere battery may be coupled to a thermally conductive material having a resistance of 4 ohms to achieve a raw temperature of approximately 85 degrees Celsius in less than 60 seconds. Under such conditions, such heat from the thermally conductive material may cause the interior of a glove to reach a temperature of 65 degrees Celsius in less than 60 seconds. In some embodiments, for a greater rate of temperature increase in shorter amounts of time, a 9 volt battery may be coupled to a thermally conductive material having a resistance of 25 ohms. In some embodiments, various configurations and combinations of battery power and electrical resistance may be utilized to preserve battery life and ensure an adequate rate of temperature increase over a desirable period of time, particularly when taking into account a wearer's physiology, environmental conditions, glove materials (e.g., leather, polyester, cotton, etc.), etc.

FIG. 4 is an illustrative diagram of an exemplary insert for use within an article of clothing for a battery housing in accordance with various embodiments. Insert 1500, in some embodiments, may correspond to a chemically cross-linked closed cell polyethylene foam that may be die cut and thermoformed and heat bonded to an elastic fabric layer. However, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any other suitable material may be used.

Insert 1500 may include body 1502, which may be shaped such that insert 1500 is capable of wrapping around a wrist portion of glove 2. In some embodiments, insert 1500 may include ridges 1506, which may enable insert 1500 to form around a curved structure, such as a wrist, or wrist portion of a glove. However, although the aforementioned description is related to use of insert 1500 with a glove, persons of ordinary skill in the art will also recognize that slight modifications in the shape and size of insert 1500 may be made so that insert 1500 may be included with other articles of clothing (e.g., a sock, shirt 40 as described below, and/or a blanket).

Insert 1500 includes raised section 1504 which may be where a housing, or any other housing for a battery, may be placed. For example, a cavity section of a housing may be placed in cavity opening 1508, and a lower surface of a lower housing portion may contact base portion 1512 of insert 1500. In some embodiments, insert 1500 may include one or more openings 1510. Openings 1510 may be used to couple or secure a housing 100 to insert 1500 integrated within an article of clothing (e.g., a glove). In one illustrative embodiment, openings 1510 may be aligned with openings of a supporting base plate of a housing. In this particular scenario, one or more screws or other coupling mechanisms may extend through openings in a supporting base plate to openings 1510 to couple a housing to insert 1500 and thus, the corresponding article of clothing insert 1500 is integrated into.

In some embodiments, Insert 1500 may be integrated into a glove in various configurations. One exemplary configuration, for example, includes insert 1500 having a thumb stabilizer portion that extends along at least a part of the thumb portion of glove 2. The thumb stabilizer portion may provide enhanced stabilization for insert 1500, and thus a housing, when integrated into glove 2. In such a configuration, a housing may be oriented horizontally such that a shorter side of a housing, if the housing is substantially rectangular shaped, is aligned with a length of an individual's wrist, while a longer side of the housing may be aligned with a width of the individual's wrist.

FIG. 5 is an illustrative diagram of a heatable shirt in accordance with various embodiments. FIG. 5 includes shirt 40 including battery 100 attached thereto. For example, battery 100 may be located at a lower portion of shirt 40 (e.g., proximate to a user's waist). However, in some embodiments, battery 100 may located at other locations within or on shirt 40. In some embodiments, one or more heating elements may be integrated throughout shirt 40 such that heat may be provided to a user wearing shirt 40 in response to a user manually generating heat using micro-generator 100. In some embodiments, micro-generator 100 of FIG. 1C may be sized differently than battery 100 of FIGS. 1A and 1B. For example, shirt 40 may be substantially larger than glove 2 and/or glove 30 and therefore may require a greater amount of energy to be produced by battery 200 to generate a suitable amount of heat for shirt 40. Thus, in one embodiment, battery 100 of shirt 40 may be slightly larger and operable to output more power than battery 100 of FIGS. 1A and 1B, however persons of ordinary skill in the art will, recognize that this is merely exemplary.

While there have been described heated gloves and methods for making the same, it is to be understood that many changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person of ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised or discovered, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art defined to be within the scope of the defined elements. The described embodiments of the invention are presented for the purpose or illustration and not of limitation except as described to the claims below. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A glove, comprising: a material suitable for clothing; a battery; and a thermally conductive material electrically coupled to the battery, wherein the battery is configured to transfer energy to the thermally conductive material such that the thermally conductive material rapidly increases temperature when coupled to the battery, and wherein the battery is magnetically coupled to the thermally conductive material.
 2. The glove of claim 1, further comprising an analog to digital converter having a first end and a second end, wherein the converter is electrically coupled to the thermally conductive material at the first end, and wherein the converter is electrically coupled to the battery at the second end.
 3. The glove of claim 1, further comprising an electric cord having a first end and a second end, wherein the battery being electrically coupled to the thermally conductive material comprises the thermally conductive material being electrically coupled to the cord at the first end and the battery being electrically coupled to the cord at the second end.
 4. The glove of claim 3, wherein the thermally conductive material is magnetically coupled to the cord at the first end, and the battery is electrically coupled to the cord at the second end via a universal serial bus connection.
 5. The glove of claim 3, wherein the battery generates a voltage output of 3.7 volts and the thermally conductive material comprises an electrical resistance of 4 ohms, such that the thermally conductive material generates a temperature of approximately 85 degrees Celsius in less than 60 seconds after being coupled to the battery.
 6. The glove of claim 1, wherein the thermally conductive material comprises at least one of: a three wire configuration; and a one wire configuration.
 7. The glove of claim 6, wherein: the three wire configuration corresponds to the battery being in a WYE configuration; and the one wire configuration corresponds to the battery being in a delta configuration.
 8. The glove of claim 7, wherein the battery is rechargeable.
 9. A wearable article, comprising: a material suitable for clothing; a battery; and a thermally conductive material electrically coupled to the battery, wherein the battery is configured to transfer energy to the thermally conductive material such that the thermally conductive material rapidly increases temperature when coupled to the battery, and wherein the battery is magnetically coupled to the thermally conductive material.
 10. The wearable article of claim 9, further comprising an analog to digital converter having a first end and a second end, wherein the converter is electrically coupled to the thermally conductive material at the first end, and wherein the converter is electrically coupled to the battery at the second end.
 11. The wearable article of claim 9, further comprising an electric cord having a first end and a second end, wherein the battery being electrically coupled to the thermally conductive material comprises the thermally conductive material being electrically coupled to the cord at the first end and the battery being electrically coupled to the cord at the second end.
 12. The wearable article of claim 11, wherein the thermally conductive material is magnetically coupled to the cord at the first end, and the battery is electrically coupled to the cord at the second end via a universal serial bus connection.
 13. The wearable article of claim 11, wherein the battery generates a voltage output of 3.7 volts and the thermally conductive material comprises an electrical resistance of 4 ohms, such the thermally conductive material generates a temperature of approximately 85 degrees Celsius in less than 60 seconds after being coupled to the battery.
 14. The wearable article of claim 9, wherein the thermally conductive material comprises at least one of: a three wire configuration; and a one wire configuration.
 15. The wearable article of claim 14, wherein: the three wire configuration corresponds to the battery being in a WYE configuration; and the one wire configuration corresponds to the battery being in a delta configuration.
 16. The wearable article of claim 9, wherein the battery is rechargeable.
 17. A glove, comprising: a housing located along a wrist portion of the glove; a battery located within the housing; an insert integrated into the glove and located along the wrist portion and at least a portion of a thumb portion of the glove; and a thermally conductive material integrated into the glove, wherein the material is electrically coupled to the battery, wherein the battery is configured to transfer energy received from the battery to produce heat in the glove.
 18. The glove of claim 17, wherein the housing is located within a recess of the insert such that the battery is substantially flush with the outer surface of the wrist portion of the glove.
 19. The glove of claim 18, wherein the thermally conductive material comprises: a first piece of conductive yarn embroidered into the glove from the wrist portion through a palm portion to a thumb portion and a pointer finger portion; a second piece of conductive yarn embroidered into the glove from the wrist portion through the palm portion to a middle finger portion and a ring finger portion; and a third piece of conductive yarn embroidered into the glove from the wrist portion through the palm portion to a ring finger portion and a pinky finger portion.
 20. The glove of claim 18, wherein the battery generates a voltage output of 3.7 volts and the material comprises an electrical resistance of 4 ohms, such the material generates a temperature of approximately 85 degrees Celsius in less than 60 seconds after being coupled to the battery. 